I’m not the only one worried about the cold weather affecting the ladies – in East Sussex the Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare has brought out the Christmas jumpers for their featherless chucks. Check them out: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-11943782

Brrrr. Poor chickens have had it tough over the past few weeks, and while it hasn’t snowed to the extent that it has around the rest of the country, it’s still bitterly cold out there. I’ve been filling the drinker with hot water so it’s less likely to freeze over during the day, as well as making sure there are extra kitchen scraps and corn for the chickens to eat to keep up their body temperatures. I’ve also filled the coop with a lot more straw than usual so hopefully it’s not too cold at night. It can’t be too bad as they’re still laying eggs, although production has gone down.

Just had an innocent smoothie that came with a little knitted hat and decided they would be perfect for the chickens when the weather gets colder! I don’t think I’ll be able to get them to keep them on but I’ll do my best to get some photos of the chickens wearing their little hats…

Now winter’s here – OK it might not be officially winter yet, but it’s pretty dark – I’m finding it hard to spend quality time with the chucks. All is well down at Hen House HQ and the ladies seem to be coping with the change in weather better than me! Egg production is still going well, which is a good sign and we’re giving them more kitchen scraps then ever to make sure they’re full up when they hit the straw at about 6pm. Photos to come…